Inaugural Moe Rosensteel Award to recognize WPIAL’s best girls soccer player

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Monday, November 4, 2019 | 4:24 PM

When the Rosensteel family tragically lost their daughter and sister, the Western Pennsylvania soccer community embraced them, consoled them and did their best to help them through the grieving process.

Kaitlyn “Moe” Rosensteel died in June. Five months later, her father has formed the Kaitlyn “Moe” Rosensteel Scholarship Foundation — along with a unique award.

The foundation will present the inaugural Moe Rosensteel Most Outstanding Player of the Year Award to the WPIAL’s top girls soccer player at the end of the season.

A scholarship also is in the works, but the foundation still is working on the details. It will be separate from the award.

A 10-person panel of those in the know — friends of the family, colleagues and media members — will vote to choose the top player, who will be announced Nov. 16.

Kaitlyn Rosensteel had just graduated from Ringgold and planned to continue her soccer career at West Virginia Wesleyan. The family, originally from Monongahela, lived in North Huntingdon for eight years. Ed Rosensteel used to be an assistant coach for the Greensburg Central Catholic girls soccer team.

Rosensteel wants his daughter’s memory to carry on through others sharing stories about her and for people to “live the way she lived.”

He said the local soccer community “laid their hand on our shoulder” when the tragedy struck the family.

“We want to be able to give back,” he said. “We could never thank everyone, but we hope this is a small thank you back to the community.”

Moe Monday! #moe86 yesterday I got 2 share a couple of items The announcement of the award & the logo that will represent the foundation I knew I wanted this pic to be the logo 2 wonderful people Ron & Karen MacDonald of Step2Branding made it real. I cannot thank them enough ???????? pic.twitter.com/v4367mArHW

— Ed Rosensteel (@edrosensteel) November 4, 2019

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Greensburg C.C., Ringgold